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June 2016

Just in time for Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, a team of United States Senators, led by Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), has introduced legislation seeking to eliminate U.S. involvement in the global shark fin market. The bipartisan Shark Fin Trade Elimination … More Info »

The proposed 2016-2018 management measures for the Atlantic herring fishery set catch limits for Atlantic herring and adjust limits, or “catch caps,” on the amount of allowable river herring and shad bycatch by the herring fleet. The Magnuson-Stevens Act, as well as the Atlantic herring fishery management plan, are clear in their requirements and goals on the need to minimize bycatch to the extent practicable; however, NOAA Fisheries preliminarily supports the NEFMC’s recommendation to increase the river herring and shad catch caps. This is a clear inconsistency with the law and management goals. … More Info »

In this edition of Fish Talk in the News, NOAA will reimburse a portion of at-sea monitoring costs; a trial date is set for Carlos Rafael; the EU asks Sweden to justify its claim that the American lobster is invasive; mercury findings prompt Maine to widen a fishing ban in Penobscot River estuary; NOAA Fisheries releases Draft Northeast Climate Science Action Plan; NOAA will post herring area 1A catches twice weekly; and Congress introduces the Shark Fin Trade Elimination Act of 2016. … More Info »

Entanglement in fishing gear is one of the leading causes of injury and death for endangered North Atlantic right whales. According to the New England Aquarium, more than 70 percent of the population has scars from fishing gear. This is a serious issue for an animal whose population numbers are in the hundreds (some 550 are left) and whose feeding grounds double as a busy fishing area. That is why the New England Aquarium is working with local fishermen to develop a new type of fishing rope, as recently highlighted by the Boston Globe. … More Info »

The Marine team at the Island Institute recently completed a characterization study of the lobster industry in Maine, and conducted interviews in each of the seven lobster management zones from southern Maine to Downeast Maine. [They] documented lobstermen’s observations about how the fishery is changing, and their concerns for what would happen in the future if lobstering isn’t considered in the ocean planning process. … More Info »

In this edition of Fish Talk in the News, NMFS announces proposed 2016-2018 Atlantic herring management measures; New England awaits the summer price drop for live lobsters; a Maine captain is accused of hiding $6,000 of scallops; elected officials send letters to the EU regarding the proposed lobster ban; Rep. Keating will file legislation to end a boundary dispute; and the Northeast Regional Ocean Plan expands the fisherman’s voice. … More Info »

In this edition of Fish Talk in the News, dogfish dominate the Gulf of Maine; great white sharks return to Cape Cod; CT congressional members call for a federal investigation in ‘unfair’ commercial fishing quotas; NOAA Fisheries announces Yellowtail Trimester Total Allowable Catch Area Closure for the common pool fishery; NOAA Fisheries announces the closure of Nantucket Lightship North Scallop Access Area; the judge orders more briefs in the Goethel lawsuit; Boston Fish Pier’s seafood business is evolving with the industry; a letter to the editor supports Governor Baker replacing seven members of the state fisheries board; and Massachusetts will decide on a $50 million restoration project. … More Info »

Three recent Barnstable Superior Court decisions have the potential for wide-ranging effects on the management of the shellfish industry, and present a great opportunity to improve the conservation of critical nearshore habitats around Massachusetts. … More Info »

In this edition of Fish Talk in the News, Gloucester hosts an invitation-only event on fish stock assessments; no ‘bait-to-plate’ leaves big gaps for fish fraud; the New England Aquarium launches a new research center; for the first time in decades, herring are spawning in a Hudson River tributary; and Maine scallop farmers borrow from Japan in test to expand fishery. … More Info »